Marijuana Blog

With Chocolope, DNA Genetics continues their project of creating tasty short-flowering sativas and reviving the classic features of old school Thai stick. The strain's father, Cannalope, is a sativa line backcrossed for fast finishing. DNA refined this feature still further, then crossed a Cannalope male with an Original Chocolate Thai female. Tasting is believing: the result retains the special flavors and effects of the OG Chocolate Thai, and lives up to the nickname Chocolope in flavor as well as genetics. It brings back a chocolate edge that was more common among good weed of the 1980s, mixed with the fruity sweetness of the Cannalope.

Minnesota is poised to become the second state to legalize medical marijuana this year, but it may not be the last.

The legislature and governor there struck a deal last week that would allow medical marijuana by the summer of 2015. It was approved by wide margins in the House and the Senate, putting the state on track to become the 22nd nationwide — and third in the Midwest — to allow marijuana for medical use. Maryland approved marijuana for such uses in April, and New York could be next.

The New York state Senate plans to take up the measure Tuesday, and the bill’s sponsor says she has more than enough votes to secure passage — a first for that chamber. The state Assembly has passed similar measures four times, according to the Syracuse Post-Standard, and voters overwhelmingly support the idea.

A February poll found that voters in New York supported legalizing medical marijuana virtually 10 to 1. Nine percent opposed the idea, while 88 percent supported it, according to Quinnipiac University, which conducted the poll. Voters in Florida, where medical marijuana is on the November ballot, support the idea by a virtually identical margin.

Bills to legalize medical marijuana have been proposed in at least 15 states this year, according to an April count by the Marijuana Policy Project, a pot advocacy group.

Tragically, Lydia Schaeffer (aged 7) passed away on Mother’s Day from a rare genetic disorder called Kleefstra syndrome, which causes terrible seizures and other complications. Her plight inspired lawmakers in Wisconsin to legalize a marijuana extract to treat her condition, despite their opposition to a broader medical marijuana reform.

Sally Schaeffer, Lydia’s mother, lobbied the state legislature to legalize the cannabidiol (CBD) extract from the marijuana stain known as Charlotte’s Web for use on children with seizure disorders. Even though lawmakers moved to pass the limited CBD-only bill in record time, determining the implications of the law stalled it from going into effect. Additionally, CBD-only bills leave behind 98% of the patients who can benefit from medical marijuana, so Wisconsin still has a long way to go before patients have legal access to this much-needed medicine.

In Lydia’s honor, Sally plans to continue spreading the word on CBD oil. She said she was contacted by Sen. Robert Wirch’s office this week and told they would try to have the bill she championed called Lydia’s Law. Wirch’s sympathy toward the Schaeffer family is welcomed, but his and other politicians’ compassion for the vast majority of other patients in need is currently lacking.

Before even starting off with the recipe for the elixir, your cannabis needs to be in tincture form. If you're unfamiliar with making tincture, it's really easy. You can use either alcohol above 40% or vegetable glycerin (I personally prefer the glycerin... It isn't as harsh on the stomach and tastes far better). You can make the tincture by placing previously frozen/extremely dry cannabis in a crockpot along with the glycerin and letting it cook for 24 hours on the "simmer" setting. Stir this mixture occasionally. You can use the alcohol method if you want by getting Everclear and putting it in a jar along with your cannabis trim. Once the trim is saturate in alcohol, shake the jar for about 15 minutes and then proceed to strain the substance through cheesecloth. Yes this method is faster but if you're unfamiliar with Everclear, I don't recommend it.

After you've created the tincture, you're ready to continue to making the delicious medicated elixir. Take the tincture and place pour it in to a Mason jar double boiler. If you are using Everclear, you need to BE CAREFUL. That alcohol is extremely flammable and should not be heated in closed conditions. Turn the heat to a point where the liquid at the edge of the Mason jar bubbles but do not let the substance boil. Boiling will release too much of the THC, giving you less of a psychoactive effect. Once the tincture has boiled down to about half of it's original amount, you can add in the honey. Continue to cook until the new mixture has boiled down to about half again.

This will give you an extremely concentrated, very powerful elixir. It can be mixed in with tea or coffee or perhaps just taken straight, as the honey will give it a very pleasant taste. You can even add it on to other medicated treats, such as toast or cinnamon buns. Basically anything you want! Just always remember to dose in small amounts so you know how the ingesting of marijuana effects you! Everyone is different so your dose won't be the same as your friends! Enjoy responsibly!